Opening Day is a celebratory time for baseball fans. It's when a long winter gives way to spring and the familiar crack of balls ricocheting off wooden bats.
The atmosphere promises to be even more jubilant than usual for Seattle Mariners fans, for whom the return of baseball is coupled with the excitement of Japanese fans eager to cheer on Ichiro Suzuki, who is slated to be in the lineup when the Mariners and Oakland Athletics start the season on Wednesday at Tokyo Dome.
Amid all this, Seattle pitcher Marco Gonzales will try to treat the first Opening Day start of his career like just another game.